Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Volume IX, Vietnam, October 1972–January 1973

Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Volume IX, Vietnam, October 1972–January 1973

Editor:

John M. Carland

General Editor:

Edward C. Keefer

Overview

This volume documents the marathon four-day
negotiating session between Kissinger and North Vietnamese representative Le Duc Tho in
Paris (October 8-11, 1972). The peace agreement they reached was rejected by South
Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu. The United States attempted to convince Thieu
that he was wrong, and in November Nixon sent Kissinger back to Paris to renegotiate 69
points on behalf of the South Vietnamese. The North Vietnamese, fiercely disagreeing
with the U.S. move, decided that they too would renegotiate issues previously agreed to.
By mid-November, the talks were on the verge of collapse. Consequently, the central
goals of U.S. foreign policy over the next few weeks were to compel both South Vietnam
and North Vietnam to accept, in its main tenets, the agreement that the United States
had negotiated with the latter in October.

In the wake of unproductive December
meetings, Nixon took one of his most controversial decisions: re-mining Haiphong Harbor
and ordering an air campaign against the Hanoi-Haiphong complex. Nixon hoped to shock
the North Vietnamese back to negotiations and remind the South Vietnamese that America’s
commitment to the defense and survival of South Vietnam was contingent upon South
Vietnam supporting the agreement. North Vietnam agreed to return to the negotiating
table, and Thieu agreed to the new terms. In early January 1973, Kissinger and Le Duc
Tho returned to Paris and in several days of hard bargaining ironed out the last details
of the settlement. Titled the “Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in
Vietnam,” the accords included a number of minor compromises negotiated in November,
December, and January. In its essentials, however, it remained remarkably similar to the
document that Kissinger and Le Duc Tho had agreed to in October.